Disney to RCCL, Will kids be happy ?

[scrapycruiser]

I'm trying to talk my son & dil into bringing my Grandchildren ( ages 11, 6, 3 ) on our Liberty Christmas cruise. They've always gone on Disney ( Caribbean, Europe, Hawaii ) and I'm having a hard time convincing them. Btw, my husband and I love RCCL ! The 2 oldest boys love the clubs. Would they be happy on the Liberty ?

[swsf99a]

Being a DVC member, having been to WDW at least every year since 1977, two Disney cruises, Diamond on Royal....my answer is yes,yes,yes to all three kids! They will all enjoy the Liberty. My children are older now and loved the Liberty ( and any cruise for that matter). We plan on a Royal ship for the grandchildren's first cruise.

[OfTheSeasCruiser]

Yes, the kids will definitely enjoy the Liberty. There are tons of things for them to do, including the flowrider, rock wall, mini golf, and more! Liberty also has the DreamWorks experience onboard, so if they enjoy the characters on Disney, they'll enjoy DreamWorks.

[grand isle joe]

Being a DVC member, having been to WDW at least every year since 1977, two Disney cruises, Diamond on Royal....my answer is yes,yes,yes to all three kids! They will all enjoy the Liberty.

 

I agree 1000%

[gerif]

Can't speak for everyone, of course, but our DGS much preferred Royal to Disney.

[cb at sea]

The overwhelming consensus is that RCI's kid's club is far superior to Disney's! They will have a blast!

[orville99]

We've taken our grandsons (now 15 and 8) on both lines (both did Disney first). They were ~6 when we did their first Disney cruise, and they both loved the clubs. Now that they've been on Enchantment, Freedom and Liberty, when we ask them which ship they'd like us to take them on next, it's RCL without blinking an eye.:)

[rudeney]

We sailed the Disney Wonder with our (then) 11yo granddaughter and we loved it. But then we sailed on Freedom of the Seas (though without her) and our take was that it was every bit as wonderful as The Wonder, and we saw plenty of kid's activities, plus having things like the Flowrider, rock wall, and carpet golf were big bonuses over the Disney ship. I felt like the DCL crew and food were slightly better than RCCL, but not enough to justify the price difference. The Wonder was a truly great ship, but Freedom was much more fabulous. My guess is that the 3yo is not going understand the difference, but the 6 and 11 year olds will really enjoy the size of the RCCL ship and its extra activities.

 

The one area where DCL really excels when cruising with kids is in the dining room. Of course both will cater to children's palates, but DCL's rotational themed dining rooms offer more visually exciting for the kids, where the fancy RCCL's dining room is probably not going to impress them. Oh, and while RCCL now has some great family suites, their staterooms still don't compare to the utility of DCL's with the split bathrooms and dual bathrooms they offer.

 

Hope this helps!

[AustinCruise]

I think the answer is "it depends". We have only been on RCCL and Carnival.

 

One of my kids (11) loves the kids club, the other would rather skip it (9). Not sure if she would like Disney either, she prefers to read.

 

But on our trip last week, some of the people we talked to said their kids liked RCCL (flow rider, rock wall, etc). Some said their kids had a better time on Disney, but couldn't articulate why.

 

So I don't feel like it is cut-n-dry.

 

We still really don't have a desire to try Disney due to cost (at least of the few itineraries that I have compared).

Edited August 17, 2015 by AustinCruise

[JoeRum]

Let's see. Go on a cruise or not? I'll take going on the cruise regardless if it is Disney or RCCL. We loved Disney and will go back someday. They won't know if they will like it or not till they try it themselves. Heck, they will save some money compared to the Disney cruise.

 

Best of luck trying to get them to come with you.

 

JoeRum

[Sitzmark]

I'm trying to talk my son & dil into bringing my Grandchildren ( ages 11, 6, 3 ) on our Liberty Christmas cruise. They've always gone on Disney ( Caribbean, Europe, Hawaii ) and I'm having a hard time convincing them. Btw, my husband and I love RCCL ! The 2 oldest boys love the clubs. Would they be happy on the Liberty ?

 

We are booked on oasis and I worry about this. I keep looking at the activities onboard and wonder how is that going to occupy the kid for a week.

[mollyeilis]

"The one area where DCL really excels when cruising with kids is in the dining room. Of course both will cater to children's palates, but DCL's rotational themed dining rooms offer more visually exciting for the kids, where the fancy RCCL's dining room is probably not going to impress them."

 

While that can be true, having a visually exciting room is not generally conducive to getting food down a kid's gullet. And that's the whole point of the dining rooms. To feed us.

 

Not only do we find Royal's food to be better (we are vegetarian and the food on Disney is just SO bad in general for dinners), but DS eats more than just mac&cheese, will eat a variety, and really fuels himself up for the days of fun on the ship and in the club.

 

He has sailed Royal at 9 and 10 and has really enjoyed the clubs. They don't have as many kids in them, and so the counselors really get to know them and enteract with them. Since DS isn't a "ignore the grownups, play with the kids" person (he was elected as the one to talk to the parents by his fellow dance company friends because even they can see that he is fine with adults), this is fun for him.

 

We have been on Freedom and there is just SO much to do on that ship class.

[OCruisers]

Depends. Tell the children it's good to try other cruise lines because if they don't they'll never know which suits them best. :)

[rudeney]

"The one area where DCL really excels when cruising with kids is in the dining room. Of course both will cater to children's palates, but DCL's rotational themed dining rooms offer more visually exciting for the kids, where the fancy RCCL's dining room is probably not going to impress them."

 

While that can be true, having a visually exciting room is not generally conducive to getting food down a kid's gullet. And that's the whole point of the dining rooms. To feed us.

 

In all of our trips to Walt Disney World, I've found the opposite - kids seem more receptive to eating in an exiting environment. But of course I guess it just depends on the child - they are all so different.

 

Not only do we find Royal's food to be better (we are vegetarian and the food on Disney is just SO bad in general for dinners), but DS eats more than just mac&cheese, will eat a variety, and really fuels himself up for the days of fun on the ship and in the club.

 

I can't attest to the differences in vegetarian meals, but I found the food on DCL to have a slight edge over RCCL. It's not a large margin, but just enough that it gets my vote. And I am glad your son eats well. Neither our daughter nor granddaughter eat well. They are definitely "carb lovers". Oddly enough, the only green the granddaughter will eat is asparagus - and on the stems! Go figure!

 

He has sailed Royal at 9 and 10 and has really enjoyed the clubs. They don't have as many kids in them, and so the counselors really get to know them and enteract with them. Since DS isn't a "ignore the grownups, play with the kids" person (he was elected as the one to talk to the parents by his fellow dance company friends because even they can see that he is fine with adults), this is fun for him.

 

We have been on Freedom and there is just SO much to do on that ship class.

 

Yep, unless the kids just must see Mickey Mouse, they will likely find just as much to do on Freedom.

[Keith1010]

Children are adaptable and they will have a great time on the cruise.

 

Keith

[big al]

The Liberty is great for kids- when you compare cruise lines, you must compare the individual SHIPS, not just the cruise lines..I.E., I would never compare the Enchantment or even Voyager class ship to the Disney Dream or Fantasy..just not a fair comparison...I am both a cruise agent & avid RCI ( Diamond) cruiser & Disney (2x) fan..the bigger, newer ships like the Dream & Fantasy are amazing, IMO...much better MDR food,and we love the rotation dining concept, much more fun than standard MDR dining- Animator's Palate was our favorite- that was sooooo cool!!... best cabins at sea ( almost all have TWO bathrooms- very convenient!!) , easily the best musical production shows at sea, a great pool area, and IMO, best service we ever had..RCI 's Liberty is great and kids should love the H20 Fun Zone pool area, mini golf, rock climbing wall, Dreamworks, Flowrider surf simulator, Royal Promenade parades at night, and more...Sailaway party on Disney in the pool area simply the best at sea..private island, Castaway Cay also BY FAR best private island around ( HAL'S Half Moon Cay 2nd IMO..) - that is a destination in itself...Pirate party with fireworks also a blast... I think the boys will love the Liberty..make sure you take them to Johnny Rockets for shakes & burgers & the waiters dance to 60's & 70's songs- lots of fun..get a table outside by the water..kids will love it! There's a nice video arcade room on deck 12 they will like..Parents have the adult Solarium pool area on deck 11, just on the other side of the kid's H20 pool..DON'T miss sitting in those glorious hot tubs that stick out over the side with stunning views of the sea ( do it on a sea day, much cooler!!)...we have done the Liberty twice & Disney twice also, so any more questions, give a shout..you will have a great time...

 

 

Big Al

[docd]

I've been on the Fantasy and the Freedom. So, my opinion is only based on that.

 

I think the younger kids will most likely prefer the Disney ships. These cruises are completely geared for the family and younger kids. The staterooms, all the entertainment and even the dining reflect that. Can you say "unlimited Mickey Ice Cream bars" ??

 

However, that doesn't mean they won't have a great time on other ships. There are a lot of things to see and do on the Freedom class. I can't imagine they would not enjoy it. I think the biggest difference will be with the entertainment. There are still plenty of family centric activities though.

 

The only way to have a real bad time on a cruise is if you let yourself do so.

[tattedbarbz]

I'm trying to talk my son & dil into bringing my Grandchildren ( ages 11, 6, 3 ) on our Liberty Christmas cruise. They've always gone on Disney ( Caribbean, Europe, Hawaii ) and I'm having a hard time convincing them. Btw, my husband and I love RCCL ! The 2 oldest boys love the clubs. Would they be happy on the Liberty ?

 

I'm now 23 but I've been crusing with Royal since I was 15 and I have always absolutely loved them. I've always gone with my younger sisters and 13 cousins and everyone loves them.. so although I can't compare to disney, I can't see why any kids wouldn't have fun!

[Winston Wolf]

The overwhelming consensus is that RCI's kid's club is far superior to Disney's! They will have a blast!

 

Data source?

[Grandma Dazzles]

My daughter and family have done both with 11, 8 and 6 year olds. They love to cruise and had a good time on both but give the edge to the Disney kids club primarily because of the hours ..... Open all day, no extra charge after 10:00 as examples.